Mahalo for chiming in Bigbro. I recall seeing very similar "hacked" pieces being carved by a group of young men at the Aloha Bowl (Oahu) a couple of years ago. I have several that I've snagged here in the L A area at thrift's, garage sales, etc.
Canvas, I like yours a lot , seems to me it has more detail than most.
Cheers

On 2013-01-15 20:06, nui 'umi 'umi wrote:Mahalo for chiming in Bigbro. I recall seeing very similar "hacked" pieces being carved by a group of young men at the Aloha Bowl (Oahu) a couple of years ago. I have several that I've snagged here in the L A area at thrift's, garage sales, etc.
Canvas, I like yours a lot , seems to me it has more detail than most.
Cheers

Indeed, the yes and nose are more balanced and better sculpted, the whole body too. That's why I am thinking that an elder in that family business might have carved it, and the stuff we see nowadays is his kids, literally and figuratively.

On 2013-01-15 20:26, nui 'umi 'umi wrote:Maybe Cook Island Maori? I googled "Cook Island" and then clicked on "images". Warning: You will get sidetracked with the abundance of wonderful pix of Island carvings

Well would that be from the Cook Islands, or from the Maori in New Zealand? - two distinctly different styles. It is neither, it is Hawaiian Ku, but Buzzy already knows that. His question was if it could possibly be based on Milan Guanko's style, a Filipino carver in the US.

Buzz-man, I don't think this is Guanko, or Bumatay. But I have seen that style before somewhere, just can't pin it down...O.A. might have an idea.

On 2013-01-15 20:26, nui 'umi 'umi wrote:Maybe Cook Island Maori? I googled "Cook Island" and then clicked on "images". Warning: You will get sidetracked with the abundance of wonderful pix of Island carvings

Well would that be from the Cook Islands, or from the Maori in New Zealand? - two distinctly different styles. It is neither, it is Hawaiian Ku, but Buzzy already knows that. His question was if it could possibly be based on Milan Guanko's style, a Filipino carver in the US.

Buzz-man, I don't think this is Guanko, or Bumatay. But I have seen that style before somewhere, just can't pin it down...O.A. might have an idea.

I should learn how to use the "quotes" function at the bottom of each post. I was responding to the Canvas' cribbage board and should have said Cook Island Maori as opposed to N. Z. Maori.
Mahalo Bigbro

Some nice people I deal with have this tiki. They have had it for over 25 years. They bought it in the Covina area. No other history on it. It's a solid piece of lava, weighs a ton, a appears to be carved with power tools... Maybe a grinder or the like...

It brings up so many questions... Who carved it? Why didn't they finish it? Was it supposed to be finished? Why did the carver pick a "cartoonish" style face?

I've been looking at tiki stuff for close to 20 years and its got me stumped. I probably won't end up with it unless they come way down on the price....

On 2013-01-18 11:39, Aquatic Safarinaut wrote:Not mine...but trying to I.D. for a friend...
Was in the Sacramento Coral Reef....

Any ideas who the carver might have been?

Cheers,
John

Got this from Bob at OA...

Aloha John:
The large tiki with hands folded over his chest is a nice tiki. Looks like it is carved from solid palmwood. In the 1960's we had 6 carvers working for us on an acre of palm logs. One order called for 35 tikis up to 7' tall. This tiki has some features like Ed Crissman used to use.
He worked for OA for 20 years. However the eyes are different and the depth of carving is different. The hands and small belly are features that Milan Guanko used, but not the upper half. Lots of carvers in Northern California in the 60's and 70's could have carved it.

Usually we know many carvers styles, however we are at a loss to name a carver Sorry we could not be of more help to you John.
Bob